Thanks for the responses. Fyr, I thought your idea was great. That didn't occur to me. Have you tried this?
mmiller, I'm sure the sail was not cleated, because I was trying to retrieve the cord from the rear of the boat (like an idiot) when I capsized it.

This is my first post. I just got an outback 2 weeks ago and the sail last week. I was on Lake Sonoma here in Northern California last week. A friend warned me that the winds here tend to be gusty and to be careful. This is also my first experience with sailing.

To cut to the chase -- my friend was right. Things were going fine until a gust came along and dumped me.

I tried to upright the boat by swimming below and pushing it back over. From what I read, I should reach over the top of the hull, grab the handle on the opposite side and pull back, right?

I managed to get it back up but I had to release the mast and the sail. In my case, it sank although I read a previous post from antbric saying it would float. It had previously floated for me too, so I'm confused here. Luckily I listened enough to the dealer that I put a knot in the line and didn't lose the sail. Can someone verify whether the sail and mast should float?

Also, if I'm reading this thread right, I should be able to up-right the kayak without removing the mast and sail, right?

Thanks a lot. My dealer is primarily a cat sailer and he referred me to this list with the comment "I've never capsized my kayak and those guys (the list) will be able to tell you the best way!"

G'Day and welcome bebop!
Yes, you should be able to right the kayak without having to remove the sail. I have done it with my Oasis as posted earlier and I had two sails up at the time!
Some have posted about difficulties righting the Outback so I'm not sure if there are issues with that kayak especially.
I'd be surprised if the sail/mast floats but I haven't actually tested that. The lesson, that you've already learned, is always to tether everything just in case.

That brings up a good point. Maybe a hose clamp or something of that nature on the mast would be a good idea if you need to take out the sail in the event of an overturn. This is something I will start thinking about since I can see the sail staying connected to the boat with the mainsheet and the mast sinking to the bottom as it slides out of the sail. I would think that we don't want to drill any holes in the mast as that would possibly weaken it.

Definitely don't drill holes in the mast. I did and mine broke. A simple way to secure the mast is to fit a jaw coupling/knuckle bimini fitting commonly available at boat shops as posted here:
http://www.hobiecat.com/community/viewtopic.php?t=8455Add a line and you can roller furl the sail and use it to secure the mast. The bearing makes for smooth rolling but it works OK without it.

Stringy,
Thanks so much for that link. I have been looking for that thread for some time, and just never saw it. I did see your roller furling post, but somehow missed this one with the parts and part numbers/sizes laid out.

My wife and I took both Outbacks out today, trying to find the best way to right after the sail overturns you. We tried a few ways mentioned in this forum. First I tried pulling over from other handle, not much luck there, unless I misunderstood. Then tried tying rope to far handle, then over keel. put feet against side. When I pushed with feet it rolled up right. Hard on the hands. Maybe a bigger rope. When my wife tried this she could not do this. Next tried pulling over by flippers. Not the best idea, I couldn't get this to work. Finally tried putting half the paddle in scupper hole. This was much easier, and my wife could right hers in this fashion. You must be careful because the boat is rolling toward you and the paddle could get you. Stay to the side of the paddle. So my process will be paddle first, rope to other handle second. Thanks to the posters in this forum. I was worried after I had rolled, and was not prepared.

My wife and I have been kayak sailing for quite a while now in the gulf, and have had Oasis, Revo, and Tandem Island boats (kayak mode). Both of us are a overweight and have great difficulty getting into any the boats if they capsize, or we fall off. Neither one of us can climb onto the side of the boat and get in that way, we just flip right over again. We have a pool and have practiced many times, but when out in heavy water with waves and wind neither of us are able to climb into the boats from the side. We both quickly get exhausted and the other has to come and help. We have tried putting a life jacket on the end of a paddle and using that for extra flotation with mixed results. I tried making a foot sling to put your foot in while trying to climb in, that didn't help either. I am able to climb up over the rear of the Oasis or Revo and climb aboard, but my wife has difficulty with that also. There is a big difference between practicing in the pool and going over in the wind waves and current, so you don't want to get over confident if you have practiced in easy conditions, but not heavier conditions (the key word here is you have to practice to make sure you can get back onto the kayak in any conditions). There are many techniques that people have posted, what is important is to use the best technique for the conditions at the time, and do it quickly because at least in mine and my wifes case we only have a couple tries before we become exhausted.One time I capsized the Oasis in Big pass in Sarasota while the tide was going out (5-6 mph tide), I couldn't get back into the boat, and was trying to swim the boat back in (with no success whatsoever), I was quickly being washed out to sea, and exhausted, my wife had to come out and save me. That was a couple years ago, ever since then we never kayak sail alone in the gulf.On our Tandem Island when in sailing mode with the AMA's installed, we have a regular 3 rung rope ladder that we use to get on and off the boat when we are scuba diving and snorkeling, makes a huge difference. The TI with the AMA's is a real bear to flip back over if you ever turtle, I have practiced a few times, but have never needed to right the boat in heavier conditions, which I imagine would be much more difficult. I think the important thing here is to know what to do, and practice to see what works best for you. Don't count on being able to just figure it out a real emergency.My two centsBob